Orlando Florida Heroin Lawyers

If you are convicted of a heroin-related offense, there are serious consequences, and very often you need a good attorney to help avoid an outcome that could close a lot of doors to you. The skilled criminal defense lawyers at Moses & Rooth offer years of experience and know-how to those in need of representation.

Heroin is one of the drugs for which Orlando once developed a reputation, and unfortunately, it still affects many lives in and around the city. In December 2015, Orlando police conducted Operation Snowplow, which resulted in 15 arrests being made, and approximately 8.5 kilograms of heroin and countless weapons being seized. This operation was conceived after a whole year that saw 683 heroin-related arrests. However, this is simply the tip of the iceberg – law enforcement will continue to crack down hard on heroin offenses.

Possession of Heroin in Orlando

Florida’s drug laws are some of the strictest in the nation. While in some states, possession of miniscule amounts (under a gram or half a gram) is considered a misdemeanor, under Florida law possession of any amount is immediately a third degree felony. This even applies to traces – for example, if you had a used syringe or foil on your person, it could be used to land you in jail for up to five years.

If you are convicted of possession, you not only face jail time, but may also face a host of other consequences. Examples include:

Immediate suspension of your driver’s license for at least two years. The judge has no discretion to waive this;

Mandatory counseling or drug treatment, especially if you are granted probation instead of jail time;

Possibly having your property, including your car or other vehicle, seized by law enforcement if it was used during the commission of your felony; and/or

Significant monetary fines.

More Serious Heroin Offenses

If you are caught with more than 4 grams of heroin, you are able to be charged with trafficking, even if you had no intent to give any to anyone else. Trafficking is a first degree felony and mandates anywhere from three years to life imprisonment under Florida law, plus attendant fines and other consequences. Much depends on how much heroin is involved, as well as your previous record (if any) and where the sale or delivery took place.

Selling heroin is also a serious offense, classified as a second degree felony – if the amount sold is greater than 10 grams, it will be a first degree felony, which carries a possible sentence of life in prison. If your sale happened within 1,000 yards of a school or assisted living facility, the penalty will be even higher – the rationale is that these places should be safe from the violence that often accompanies the drug trade.

Defenses & Plea-Bargains for Heroin

Sometimes, there are partial or complete defenses that your attorney can raise that may help to get the charge lowered. The most common is to argue that the search performed by law enforcement to obtain evidence against you was illegal. The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution bars illegal searches and seizures, which means that any search of your person or your property that is not properly conducted – for example, a warrantless search – will render the evidence inadmissible in court. Consult an experienced legal professional to get further information on your specific case and the potential outcomes.

An Experienced Orlando Heroin Attorney Can Help

Facing criminal charges can be a terrifying experience, even without the countless other factors that may influence your life, family and career for the worse. The stakes are high – you need attorneys who are well versed in the relevant law, and ready, willing and able to try to find weaknesses in the state’s case so that your life is not put on hold for any longer than it has to be.

The experienced Orlando criminal law attorneys at Moses & Rooth Attorneys at Law are both former prosecutors, so we know some of the ways the state will try to make criminal charges stick. Our firm practices nothing but criminal law, and we do our best to stay up to date on changes and news in the field, so we can provide the best possible services to our clients.

Contact us today at (407) 377-0150, or via the form on our website, to discuss your options in a free initial consultation. We will fight for you.

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